The woodworking center of the present invention is primarily designed to perform a large number of woodworking operations. Because of the built-in accuracy of movements of both the tooling and the workpiece, and because of the wide scope of tooling and accessories which can be used with the center, the center lends itself well to perform numerous operations on plastic and light metal workpieces, as well. However, for purposes of an exemplary showing, the center will be described in its application as a woodworking center.
Prior art workers have devised a number of woodworking tool combinations or centers capable of performing a number of woodworking operations. Such woodworking assemblies, however, generally require specialized tools which are either a permanent part of the woodworking assembly, or are capable of use only with the woodworking assembly.
The woodworking center of the present invention is based on the concept that conventional, readily available, well-known and time proven portable power tools can be mounted on the carriage assembly of the woodworking center and used to perform various woodworking operations for which they were originally designed. The woodworking center accurately aligns, rigidly secures, and moves the tooling with precision not attainable when the tool is hand held. Nevertheless, all of the tooling (with the exception of the wood lathe) can be removed from the machine and used in a conventional manual manner.
The woodworking center of the present invention does not take up any more floor space than some woodworking tools, but is capable of performing an unusually wide variety of woodworking functions with an accuracy, a precision, and a repeatability which simply cannot be achieved manually. Despite its accuracy and repeatability, the woodworking center is simple in construction and very easy to use.